Psychedelic Soul
by Pearli97
Summary: Mutant AU! Tragedy strikes when Kageyama's mutant powers activate leaving him on the run in search of safe haven. Rated M for minor gore.
1. Chapter 1

**Author note: I want to say for this story there will be death and minor gore. Also there is an attempted suicide attempt in this first chapter and I don't want to trigger anyone. So if you're still here I hope you enjoy.**

" _Iwa-ch- Hajime?! Kageyama! Why isn't he breathing?" Kageyama just stared down at Oikawa as he cradled Iwaizumi's broken body, the body he broke. "You did this didn't you? You monster! You're a mutant! You killed Iwa-chan!"_

Kageyama ran and didn't stop in spite of the ache in his legs, in spite of the burning in his lungs "y _ou monster!"_ His vision began to blur together as his tears clouded his vision.

"I-I didn't mean to! I didn't want to hurt anybody!" His legs couldn't carry him any longer. He ended up tumbling against a cold metal surface with a sharp inhale. He could taste the crisp watery air. When he was able to crack open his eyes, he saw nothing but a black abyss before him. Confused, he looked around to see a car pass by. He had no idea what part of Tokyo he was in anymore only that he was on the middle of a bridge with no idea with which way he had come from. "Iwaizumi always did say I had a knack for getting lost when I ran." The dark haired boy sighed fondly until he remembered why he was even out there.

" _You killed Iwa-chan!"_ His hands tightened around the chilled metal, slowly pushing himself up and on to the top of the railing. He wanted to be on the other side but before he could get his legs around, he heard footsteps.

"Hey" Kageyama nearly jumped out of his skin at the deep masculine voice. He almost lost his balance when he tried to glare at the tall messy black haired man but from the man's strange smirk he knew it would do him no good. "What'cha doing?" The man simply asked offering the teen a tissue like a peace offering.

Kageyama decided he didn't care. He glared. "What do you think I'm doing dumbass?!" He snapped slapping away the tissue which fluttered away into the dark pit below. When the stark white vanished like it had never existed, all the color drained from the teen's face, his vision began to blur. With each blink he could slowly see the smirk wiping away from the other man's face until finally he found himself staring at the fraying knit of the man's plaid shirt.

"Whoa didn't expect you to almost fall. Kid you okay?" He couldn't bring himself to answer. He just buried his face into the man's shirt, another wave of burning tears coming on. "I take that as a no. Come on. I'm taking you to my place. I can't send you on your way looking like this. I'm Kuroo Tetsurou by the way; can I have your name?"

"K-Kageyama Tobio…" He heard the man hum thoughtfully before he righted him on his own two feet.

"Good, good Kageyama I hope you can walk because you're pretty heavy and this bridge is looong."

The cold November air chilled Kageyama down to the bone. It was only now that he realized he was only wearing gym shorts and a thin cotton shirt. When he began to shake, Kuroo shrugged off his coat and wrapped it around his shoulders.

"I won't ask you why you were out here tonight. I don't want to make you uncomfortable."

The teen let of a small sigh of relief. The man was kind enough to offer him shelter for the night; he didn't want to ruin that. He knew after tonight, he couldn't return back to his home. His parents cursed at the thought of mutants being in schools around normal children. What would they think if their own son turned out to be one?

"But I should probably tell you a bit about myself. I don't want you stumbling across anything in my house and think I'm some sort of pervert… Uh well wait… I guess you can't really call yourself a prostitute and not be some sort of pervert I guess… But I take pride in my separation of home and work life!"

Kageyama couldn't help the small smile that formed on his lips "it's fine really. I have no room to judge anyone really."

The smirk was back on Kuroo's lips by the time they reached the end of the bridge. "Oh and one more thing, I have a roommate, my best friend really. He's- wait never mind he should be out a volleyball training camp 'till tomorrow." The shorter said nothing. He didn't want to upset Kuroo by his lack of desire to meet another human for the time being. From his drawn together brows, he could easily tell how much he missed his friend even if it was just for another day.

Kuroo's apartment was small yet homey. The main room which consisted of two futons, a kotatsu and TV piled high with video games of all kinds was a relaxing soft tan with many vibrant volleyball posters scattered inconsistently around.

"Well make yourself at home kid. I'll bring you out some food. I swear I could hear your stomach growling since we got off the bridge!"

When Kuroo disappeared into the tiny kitchen, Kageyama wandered over to the kotatsu, cautious with each step he took. He couldn't exactly see the floor with all the items that were littered across it. He didn't want to step on anything irreplaceable or gross. His concern however began to waver as he began to smell Kuroo's cooking. 'Pork curry' he thought happily for a moment forgetting about everything that had happened in the last three hours.

"I was gonna ask if pork curry was okay but I can tell by your face that it's perfect." Kuroo hummed as he placed the curry and rice on kotatsu before sitting down.

Kageyama tilted his head "aren't you gonna eat anything?" He could feel the drool trying to drip out of his mouth. He didn't understand why Kuroo didn't feel the same way.

"You're sweet for caring for my well being but I've had enough salt for the day." He still didn't understand but he began to dig in any way that was until Kuroo spoke again, this time his voice more serious. "I know you're a mutant."

The spoon dropped from his hand as his navy eyes widened. He spat out the food, hitting Kuroo in the face with a partially chewed potato chunk and tried to get up however his legs wouldn't cooperate. "Y-you poisoned me didn't you?!"

Kuroo scratched at the mess that was his hair "no I didn't, if Kenma, my roommate made it, then it's a 50/50 chance. You're probably just tired." Kageyama didn't care all he knew was that he had to get away. Oikawa had friends everywhere; Kuroo could be one of them. He was probably just holding him until he got here so he could kill him. He didn't want to die; almost falling off the bridge told him that.

"Come on kid I'm not gonna hurt you. I'm a mutant too."

His words brought Kageyama no comfort. "Well then how do you know I'm a mutant then huh? Is that your power?!"

"Um I don't think the news is a mutant power, stupidity isn't mutant. It's normal" he laughed "Anyways, after I finished 'business' with my client of the night, he had the news on and there your picture was with the tagline 'Wanted for Murder'."

Kageyama couldn't deny it. It was true. He killed Iwaizumi when his powers emerged.

"Trust me kid I won't judge. I've done a lot worse and I don't want you to fall down the same path as me."

"Okay…" He sighed "It all started this afternoon."

 **Constructive criticism, suggestions and comments are always appreciated :3**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Everyone got the occasional headache every now and then however for Kageyama; they were a constant thing since his last year of middle school. Voices were grating, his grades slipped and even his performance in volleyball, his favorite activity suffered. He became irate if his partner missed the ball or if his serve didn't hit his mark. Eventually the coach told him to sit out for a while. He didn't return to volleyball until high school. He still practiced when he could and soon after that, started taking painkillers. They only dulled the pain, but he was used to it. He wanted play under Oikawa and Iwaizumi, his senpais, again.

"Tobio-Chan! ~" Oikawa sang out each syllable as he trotted over to the raven haired teen entering the gym. "I didn't think you'd play anymore! Kindaichi-Chan said you quit volleyball! My Kouhai? I refused to believe it and here you are!" Kageyama could hear the sarcastic venom in his voice. He could even see the irritation burning in his chocolate eyes. The two never got along yet he still respected the other setter.

"Hey Shittykawa! Stop giving Kageyama grief!" A smirk formed on the first year's lips as Oikawa turned away from him with a huff to see the slightly shorter spiky dark haired man stalking up to him.

"Iwa-Chan I wasn't- Ouch!" The other man had swatted him up the backside of his head before leading Kageyama away to the other side of the gym.

"I'm sorry about Oikawa" He sighed with a scratch to the back of his head. "How are you? I know you used to get pretty nasty headaches every now and then…"

"Don't worry Iwaizumi-san I'm fine. Really I am." He wasn't. His painkillers were wearing down earlier than usual.

Iwaizumi saw easily through his lie. "Kageyama, don't lie to me. I know volleyball is important to you but please put your health before the sport. Have you even been to a doctor?"

"My parents think I'm lying."

The third-year snorted "no wonder why. You just lied to me barely even two minutes ago! Now go lay down in the storage room. I'm taking you to the hospital after practice. That Trashykawa wouldn't let me off early even if I gave him a kiss."

Kageyama did as he was told. He made himself comfortable on some mats in the dark storage room and tried to sleep. Sleep however, remained elusive due to his throbbing head. He tried rolling around the mats to tire himself out but that did nothing but aggravate his head further. He ended up just staring up at the ceiling until his vision began to swirl. That was when Iwaizumi returned.

"Well practice is over. How're you feeling?" His voice was as soft as he could manage. That was until he was by his side, hand resting on the younger's forehead. "Kageyama you're burning up! Come on I gotta get you out of here!" He sounded scared and that in turn freaked Kageyama out.

"N-no I'm fine!"

It was when Iwaizumi moved to pick him up that a loud crack reverberated throughout the storage room. Kageyama's navy widened impossibly as he stared up at the twisted image that had become Iwaizumi's arm. His fingers were bent at impossible angles while his forearm was broken in half threatening to break through skin as it hung freely. Iwaizumi didn't scream. He just followed the first-year's movement. Scared, Kageyama scooted away until was able to brace himself against the wall to stand. His head was throbbing unbearably at this point. Even his vision had become useless. Anything but his senior was shrouded in a thick fog. The dark haired boy couldn't help the tears that began pour down his face.

Iwaizumi seemingly didn't notice his broken arm as he took a step towards Kageyama. "K-Kageyama- Tobio… I want you to take a deep breath and calm down I'm not mad at you."

But Kageyama couldn't listen. He refused, cupping his ears with his hands as he tried to shrink away from the slowly encroaching Iwaizumi. With a pained cry, another crack filled the tense air followed by something large hitting the wooden floor. For a moment, Kageyama hoped it was his own body. But the dead coffee eyes that bore up into his own lapis ones told him otherwise.

"Iwa-Chan come on I wanna go home! Tobio-Chan'll be fine without y-you…" Oikawa stood in the doorway, the light of the gym on his back, nearly shadowing the look of horror on his face until he dove to Iwaizumi's side.

"Iwa-ch- Hajime?! Kageyama! Why isn't he breathing?" Kageyama just stared down at Oikawa as he cradled Iwaizumi's broken body, the body he broke. "You did this didn't you? You monster! You're a mutant! You killed Iwa-chan!"

His legs were barely cooperating but he ran out, ignoring the confused faces of the cleaning volleyball team. He didn't even notice that his headache had completely vanished for the first time since middle school.

-A-

"…And that's what pretty much happened." Kageyama honestly thought Kuroo would have fallen asleep through his story but he stayed awake the whole time.

"Wow and all that just happened only just a few hours ago?"

"Pretty much…"

Kuroo nodded "well how you feel now kid? Does your head hurt anymore?" He didn't receive an answer as the teen just stared back at him in confusion. "What do I have something on my face or something?"

"A-ah no" Kageyama stammered "it-it's just…"

"Save it kid I'm not gonna pass judgment and smite you. Like I said, I've done worse." Nothing was said for a while after that. The only sound that filled the apartment was the scraping of chopsticks against a bowl and Kuroo's fingers tapping on the table.

"So what did you do? I-I mean if you don't mind me asking Kuroo-san…" He watched the older man carefully as he rose and took his bowl to the sink once he finished.

"I guess this night's gonna be background heavy." He chuckled once he returned to his spot. "Well as I told you I am a mutant and I can do this." Reaching over to the TV, he grabbed a hold of a scratch less disk. "Now watch, nothing up my sleeves or in my pants." Setting the disk down, he trained his dark eyes on it. For a moment, Kageyama thought he saw them flash gold before the disk cracked down the middle. "I guess you can say I'm made of bad luck. Sounds stupid isn't it? But it's not. One time a client skipped out on payment and well he 'accidently' fell down a sewage grate."

"You saved my life. I-I don't think you-you're all bad luck. You're ni-ni-nice."

Kuroo's lip quirked upwards "I'm sensing you're not used to giving out compliments. But I'll take it kid. Well anyway, when I was maybe a bit older you when my mutation developed. They say the later it emerges, the harder it is to control at first; weird isn't it?" When he began to trail off, the teen wondered if he shouldn't have asked him anything until he started back up again. "It was Kenma's birthday. My folks and his were as close as I am to Kenma. We were on the freeway when I had a lapse in control. I ended up causing a massive pile up. Our parents died and so did many others. Kenma I think only survived because he was by my side…"

"I remember hearing about that. It was classified as an accident wasn't it?"

"Yeah and Kenma and me were classified as miracles for surviving. Neither of us actually felt like miracles. I ended up having to drop out of high school to support the both of us doing-"he clearly wanted to say more but he stopped the moment the two of them heard the door crack open.

"Kuroo the camp was cancelled. Are you home?" A quiet voice drifted in; bringing a smile of relief to the tall man's face.

"Yeah I'm here with a friend. There's food in the kitchen if you want anything Kenma." There was a muffled grunt followed a clunk and the sound porcelain hitting porcelain.

Even though Kuroo assured him there was no danger, Kageyama still shrunk in on himself.

"Your glare isn't exactly friendly." Kuroo yawned before Kenma finally emerged: he was shorter than Kuroo with dyed blonde hair, his dark roots were poking out which ended up reminding Kageyama of pudding. He was wearing a red and white tracksuit. His gold cat-like eyes were focused with on the slice of pie in his hand. "Kenma when I said food, I didn't mean apple pie. You need protein."

Kenma just shrugged as he sat down in between the two, revealing the side of his tracksuit to Kageyama which read 'Nekoma Volleyball'.

"Ugh Kenma this is Kageyama Tobio. He's going to be staying with us for a bit."

The dark haired teen would have been lying if he said he wasn't bothered by the man's cat-like eyes staring into him.

"Kuroo how many more people are you going to rescue from the Aoba Johsai?"

"He wasn't being held by those asses Kenma. I stopped him from killing himself."

When the two continued to bicker, Kageyama couldn't help but wish he was invisible. While they kept their voices down like they were having a peaceful conversation, their words were not.

"Aoba Johsai is dangerous. He could have escaped from them, putting a target on your head."

"Kenma I swear to God himself that he didn't. Look at his face. Does it even look like he even knows what we're talking about?" The blonde just glanced the other teen's way before letting off a huff.

"Things just keep getting worse… Can you blame me for worrying about you?" Kuroo shook his head before moving to his side to nuzzle the side of his head until his eyes began to droop. "You don't play fair…" He was asleep before Kuroo even got him tucked into his futon.

"I'm sorry about that Kageyama… Kenma he- "

"He really cares about you. It's fine but what is the Aoba Johsai? What makes them so dangerous?"

Kuroo didn't look him the eye as he scratched at his head "I'll tell you in the morning. It's been one long night." Kageyama couldn't argue with him on that matter.


	3. Chapter 3

Sleep still didn't come easy for Kageyama. He was restless, and anytime he was able to find sleep, his dreams were plagued with nightmares that felt so vivid.

" _You can't run forever, Tobio-Chan~"_ Oikawa taunted, his eerily saccharine voice sending chills down the fleeing teen's spine, _"you'll pay for what you've done~"_

It was just a nightmare that much Kageyama knew, but he still ran the losing battle against Oikawa and the shadowy bodies behind him that he assumed to be the rest of his school's volleyball team. That was until he rammed into a tepid, sturdy surface.

" _Kageyama…"_

Dead coffee eyes stared back down into his own. It was Iwaizumi, his neck still broken and his arm as limp as a puppet's, _"Kageyama… It's not your fault. Don't look so sad."_

" _How can you say that even in a dream?! You dumbass!"_ he screamed, tears streaking down his face, _"I killed you! I ended your life! Stop acting so nice to me!"_ By this point, both he and Iwaizumi were encircled by Oikawa and his team. None of them however paid the latter any mind. They only saw Kageyama.

What happened next could only be left to his imagination as he was awoken by something kicking at his side. Cracking open an eye, he was greeted to the sight of Kenma's red- clothed leg pushing exhaustedly at his ribs. Kenma himself was trying to worm himself out of Kuroo's arms, making Kageyama wonder if he just kicked him by accident.

"You were shouting in your sleep."

Well that answered his thought. "S-sorry, bad dream. Real bad dream."

Kenma didn't say anything as he finally got free of Kuroo's grasp and wandered into the kitchen. The raven haired boy didn't know what to do as he waited for him to return, he ended up just looking at Kuroo who had moved into an interesting position. He was lying on his stomach, ass in the air while he pressed two pillows to his head. He had to wonder if he could breathe, but again his thought was answered by Kenma as he handed him a cup of what he presumed to be tea.

"He's fine. He sleeps like that so I can play video games at night. He's a heavy sleeper anyways," to prove his statement, he flicked on the TV to show a paused game.

"Oh." Kageyama ended up moving closer to Kenma and the TV as he waited for his drink to cool. The game the other teen played didn't particularly interest him. The game's world, while colorfully designed, was sparing in things to do in it other than fight the occasional enemy. He did, however, think the characters looked nice enough.

"So you're a mutant right?" the dyed blonde asked as he started what Kageyama assumed to be a boss fight with an oversized dragon and its lackeys.

The younger just nodded before he took a tentative sip of his drink. It had the taste of dishwater.

"You know, you're not the first mutant Kuroo brought back here. The seventh, I think. Four of them are dead now. They were killed by the Aoba Johsai."

Kageyama pursed his lips. He still had no idea what the Aoba Johsai even was.

"I take it they hate mutants?"

The blonde nodded, his eyes never leaving the TV screen, "people don't like change. They don't like the idea of someone being better than them. Mutants don't really have rights. It's ironic if you think about it. Mutants aren't born, they develop. You live your life like everyone else until they emerge, then you're considered an outcast. People don't care if you live or die. But even then, gangs like the Aoba Johsai crop up to 'take care' of mutants. People actually donate their money to them to wipe Japan clean of mutants. Sometimes they don't just kill them, they capture them and do who knows what. But the news never talks about it. They just say how the Aoba Johsai are heroes and how mutants are evil baby- killing monsters, ignoring the fact that they're just as guilty of murder as anyone else.

"Um, Kenma-san, are you a mutant too?"

He shook his head, "no, I'm not. I've just seen it all first hand. How people look at Kuroo. Before he dropped out of high school, he was at the top of his class and our school's volleyball captain. Once it spread that he was a mutant though, people said that he cheated to get to where he was and it was a good thing that he didn't graduate, all the while he was trying to support the both of us… Oh, game over…" His eyes appeared to have glazed over with what Kageyama could assume to be tears.

The game's fading blue text only seemed to mock both of the teens.

It was mid-morning by the time Kuroo arose from his futon with a loud yawn and a scratch to his ass to find that both Kenma and Kageyama had crawled under the kotatsu and fallen asleep. Smiling, he ended up collecting the dishes and wandered to the kitchen.

He wasn't exactly as quiet as he could have been, as he ended up waking Kageyama, who realized he needed to use the bathroom rather badly. As he got up however, he couldn't help but hear Kuroo talking to someone. While he was curious, his bladder ended up having the final say, but that was only until he got close enough to hide behind the bathroom door where he could hear the older man more clearly.

"Akaashi, he's my friend too. I know, I know. Akaashi, listen to me, I'll do what I can for Bokuto. No, I remember Alisa. Wait, she what? Ugh, life just keeps getting even more complicated…" By the time he had hung up, Kageyama had already shut the bathroom door as quietly as he could manage.

Kageyama didn't know what to think on the matter. He knew he shouldn't have listened to Kuroo's private conversation, but he couldn't help his concern that even surprised himself. He wasn't exactly used to showing concern for others. He usually liked to keep to himself, except for when it came to volleyball, and even then he had a horrible time interacting with anyone other than Iwaizumi. The thought of Iwaizumi brought on a headache, much to his confusion.

He ended up sitting in the bathroom, hoping it would go away until there was a knock at the door.

"Hey kid, you okay in there? I made some breakfast and I have some clothes for you too if you like. Shorts and a t-shirt aren't exactly fall material," Kuroo called to him until the door opened and the teen poked his head out.

"I kind of got a headache. Can I just take a bath and eat later?"

The messy haired man shrugged, "fine by me. These are for you by the way." He handed him off a long-sleeve sweater and a pair of familiar red and white sweats. "I don't think my jeans will fit you and I know Kenma's won't, so it looks like you're gonna a part of the Nekoma volleyball team for the time being."

Upon entering the bath, Kageyama was greeted by his mirror image, startling him until he realized that it was only his reflection. "Great. I'm scared of my own reflection now…," he muttered as he stepped up to it to get a better look at himself. From a distance, he could tell he looked horrible and being up close only confirmed it. His skin looked translucent and the dark circles under his eyes didn't help. His normally silky ebony hair had dulled, standing up in awkward angles, while his clothes just looked plain grungy and his headache certainly wasn't helping. He ended up covering the mirror with a towel before he got into the tub.

While the water was relaxing, his headache remained, as did the thoughts of Iwaizumi. Frustrated, he sunk under the water until only his eyes remained closed above the water. The thoughts that crossed his mind however had nothing to do with the previous day. They were of his first year of middle school when he joined the volleyball team. Oikawa had wanted nothing to do with him, as he didn't care for another setter trying to take his place. Iwaizumi on the other hand was nice enough to practice with him while Oikawa trained with the others. He remembered after that practice, Iwaizumi bought them both meat buns and how his infatuation grew for the ace.

The thoughts ended when he heard something drop into the water. Eyes snapping open, he saw a small owl bath toy floating in the water that he vaguely remembered had been sitting on the bath edge. Allowing it to float over, he picked it up and squeaked it, snorting when it actually sounded like a hoot. By that point, he noticed it had a little etching in its side. The handwriting was atrocious, but he was able to make out: 'To Kuroo, owl love you forever bro, Bokuto.' He had to wonder if it was the same Bokuto from Kuroo's phone call, but he didn't put much thought into it as he returned it to the edge and unplugged the tub. His headache had gone and his stomach was growling at him angrily.

By the time Kageyama stepped out of the bathroom, Kenma was gone and only Kuroo remained. He was staring at a black cat that had wandered onto the balcony of his apartment.

"Kenma says he sees no difference between me and black cats," he mused as Kageyama took at seat. "Sorry for my ramble. How's your head?"

"Better. The bath was nice and warm. Where's Kenma?"

"Oh, he went back to school for practice. The camp gets cancelled and he still has practice the next day. I myself have to get going soon anyways. I got 'business' with a client in two hours."

He had to wonder if he meant his job or business with the person over the phone, but that thought ended up being pushed to the back of his head as he started to worry about being left alone.

"Hey kid, you look like you've seen a ghost. You okay?"

Kageyama bit his lip, "I'm fine."

"Kid, you're about as easy to read as a picture book for two- year-olds. If you don't want to be alone, I can call up Kenma and ask him to end practice early. I'm sure he won't mind."

"N-no. I won't inconvenience you two."

Kageyama, however was just waved off.

"I want you to feel safe here and if you're not, I want to change that. Kenma told me what he told you last night and I want you to know that I will do anything in my power to keep you safe."

He couldn't look Kuroo in the eyes, "you're just saying that…"

"No, I'm always this nice," Kuroo smiled reassuringly, "now let me go reheat your breakfast."


	4. Chapter 4

The moment he made sure Kageyama ate his breakfast, Kuroo was out the door with a hurried apology that assured the teen that Kenma would be around within the hour.

When the door shut, Kageyama listened until Kuroo's footsteps drifted away before he allowed himself to freak out. He knew his fears had become irrational when he imagined Oikawa jumping onto the balcony with a gun ready to shoot him in the back of the head, but that didn't stop his thoughts in the deafening silence of the apartment. To end the silence, he ended up turning on the TV, only to be greeted by his own high school photo.

" _Kageyama Tobio, pictured above, is still wanted at large for the connection to the murder of Iwaizumi Hajime. The two of them both attended Kitagawa Academy. Kageyama has been described as ill-tempered by his classmates, so if you see him, it's best to call the local authorities immediately."_

"I'm not ill tempered…," he pouted.

The statement didn't really bother him. He was more confused as to why it wasn't mentioned that he was a mutant. Oikawa had even called him one. He didn't think about it long as he heard something crash behind him, startling him. His bowl from earlier had tumbled off the kotatsu.

"Damn. Stupid bowl."

When he reached down to get it, however, he noticed something odd. The bowl had begun to move on its own. It had moved away from his hand, and when he pulled back it came closer to him.

"…Whoa…"

Marveled, Kageyama tried lifting his hand to see if the bowl would follow. It did.

"Cool"

A smile began to tug at his lips until he remembered what he had done with his newfound ability not even twenty four hours ago, causing a sharp pang to run through his head. The bowl ended up dropping with a loud crack.

It wasn't that Kenma didn't like Kageyama. He just didn't like being social with people he didn't know that well. He already had a horrible time trying to be social with the first years on the volleyball team like his coach wanted.

"…Kuroo will send him on his way like he always does…," he huffed quietly to himself as he tried to find the key to the door of the apartment. It wasn't until he had the right key in hand that he heard a thump and crash on the other side. He knew it should just be Kageyama in there, but he wasn't sure what he was doing in there or if he was in any danger. Sighing, he placed the key in the door and began to shuffle through his bag until he found a small container of pepper spray that Kuroo had given him for emergencies. If someone was in there with the other teen, he knew it would knock them down long enough to give Kageyama his escape.

As quietly as he could, he unlocked the door and stepped in. He could hear the low drone of a newswoman on the TV as he stepped around the corner to see a shattered bowl atop the kotatsu and Kageyama's unmoving legs behind it. No one else was in the room.

"…Kageyama?" he called as he walked over, pocketing the pepper spray. The teen's only answer was a low groan. Kageyama was laying on his back staring up at Kenma with lidded eyes, blood spilling from his nose.

It took him around ten minutes to clean up the broken bowl and the delirious Kageyama's nose, and by that point he just wanted to sit down and play his video game in peace. He had assumed the other boy had passed out until he began to babble out what he assumed to be an apology.

"It's fine. But how did your nose start to bleed?" He had to admit he was curious. There was no blood on the bowl's broken shards.

Kageyama seemed to hesitate before he muttered, "I-I was… I guess trying to use my mutant powers… I was levitating the bowl… Then I dropped it. I'm so-sorry."

Neither said anything to each other for a long time after that. The only sound came from Kenma's game.

Night fell without the reappearance of Kuroo, and Kageyama could see the tension in Kenma's shoulders as he played his game, his fingers hitting the controller's buttons harshly until his stomach began to growl loudly.

"…I want food. Do you want take out?"

"That's fine."

Kenma ended up ordering Chinese food for the both of them, even though they both ended up picking at their portions.

"Does Kuroo always stay out so late?" Kageyama ended up asking, trying to break the silence.

"Sometimes" Kenma responded quietly, pushing at a piece of broccoli with his chop stick, "we're usually on different schedules. He'd get home after I left for school and be gone by the time I got back…"

"I admit that's how it was with my parents. But they didn't really care about me as much as Kuroo cares about you," Kageyama admitted. It was easy to see Kenma's small flustered blush when he tried to hide behind his hair.

"That's just Kuroo's nature… He wants the best for everyone, but he can be callous too. He's not a push over…" The room went quiet again for a while until Kenma spoke again, "on my way home, I saw a lot of members of the Aoba Johsai walking around…"

Kageyama tilted his head, "how could you tell?"

"They wear these fancy silver turquoise leaf pins on their clothes… I think they're after Kuroo…"

As if on cue, Kuroo barreled through the door looking worse for wear; his hair was matted down by blood, some of it dripping down onto his forehead which was covered in dirt. His clothes were also covered in dirt and tears that looked like he was attacked by some sort of animal.

When he collapsed onto the floor, Kenma was by his side in an instant, the fastest Kageyama ever saw him move during his time in the apartment.

"Kuroo what happened to you?" Kenma's normally disinterested voice was replaced with a soft worried one as he pawed at the bigger man until he rolled over and tiredly smiled at him.

"Rough client."

Even Kageyama knew he was lying. "Stop it Kuroo that's not true. It was the Aoba Johsai wasn't it?"

He nodded with a small cough, "Kenma… it's not safe here anymore for the both of you… I want you both to go to Karasuno…"

"Stop it! I'm not leaving you. Kageyama could you get me a towel from the bathroom?"

The dark haired teen nodded and, although shaky at first, he made it to the bathroom, pushing the thought of what Karasuno was to the side for the moment.

When he returned, Kenma had gotten Kuroo's head onto his lap and was running his fingers through his hair, trying to detangle it to no avail. Kuroo had seemed to doze off.

"Here you go. I wetted it a little bit."

"Thanks…"

Carefully, Kenma began cleaning up Kuroo's face with as much concentration as he put into his games.

Kageyama didn't want to break his concentration, but he wanted to ask about Karasuno, though Kenma had already guessed that he wanted to know.

"Karasuno is a mutant haven up north in the Miyagi prefecture ran by a friend of Kuroo's. Kuroo would help mutants escape from Aoba Johsai and send them north where it was safer, but…"

"Not all of them made it."

Kenma nodded.

"Their reach is far. To stop it, Kuroo ended up striking up a deal with a farmer outside of Tokyo to house them until it was safer for travel… I always told him that this would bite him in the butt."

"Y-yeah, I guess it did, Kenma," Kuroo chuckled, startling the other two as he rose onto his feet with a slight wobble, "but it won't stop me. I still have business to finish with those bastards and I was serious. You both are going to Karasuno."

"No."

"Yes Kenma."

"No Kuroo…"

The two ended up going back and forth for a long time, even as Kuroo went around the apartment packing various essentials into a messenger bag.

"Kenma, you're going. I've already called Daichi and besides, you get to see Hinata again. Isn't that nice?"

The blonde almost instantly quieted except to mumble, "Shouyou…," which Kageyama could only assume to be the person Kuroo mentioned's name.

With a sigh of relief, Kuroo turned his attention to the younger teen, "Kageyama, I'm going to give you the directions and buses to take. Kenma's horrible with directions."

"No I'm not."

"Yes you are."

Kenma just groaned before he wandered off to the bathroom.

When Kuroo handed him a slightly ripped map, Kageyama took note of all the circled stops and bus numbers before looking up into Kuroo's tired eyes, seeing the physical and emotional wear in them.

"You guys will leave in the morning and don't worry about being caught. The news will forget about you by tomorrow, like they always do."


	5. Chapter 5

"Sir, it seems your tactic with the owl and lion worked. Kuroo Tetsurou is sending him away. Shall we send the snake to retrieve him?" a man with short pink hair asked over the phone, his eyes on the tablet sitting on his lap that displayed the image of two young men, both with variations of white hair.

"I suppose. I just wish that Iwaizumi brat had done his mission right. I don't like wasting my assets on petty threats like Tetsurou, Hanamaki," an annoyed man grunted back.

"You forget, sir, that he liberated six of your assets on two separate occasions. He's not exactly petty, especially if you needed-"

"Hanamaki, whose side are you on?"

The pink haired man groaned, "yours. The Aoba Johsai's."

"Good. Now how is our spy doing down in Karasuno?"

"Doing as fine as ever, though I wonder why you're putting so much blind faith in him."

"He'll do as he's told. He has his motivations."

Hanamaki rolled his eyes, "yes sir. Anyways, what do you want me to do about our new recruits? They seem anxious to get a piece of Kageyama. It seems they cared a lot about Iwaizumi, poor things."

"I don't care. Keep them on standby. I won't have them ruin my plans."

"Yes sir."

Despite what Kuroo had said, the news hadn't forgotten about Kageyama. His face was still on the news, only this time with a bounty over it.

"Wow, they really want you in prison," Kuroo mused as he dug casually through his closet, much to the young teen's horror.

"I'll be in a police car the moment I step outside your apartment building and then they'll arrest Kenma too as an accessory, you dumbass!"

When Kageyama pointed to the blonde, he just moved away and pulled his PSP out of his pants pocket. He was dressed for school, but they all knew he wasn't going.

"No you won't. I got you a disguise," smiling as wide as his now bruised face would allow, he held up a black and grey pullover and a hat that read 'Hollywood' with a pair of sunglasses sitting on the bill.

Kageyama couldn't help the twitch in his eye even as he put it on and was forced out the door with Kenma by Kuroo.

"Now the bus will be by shortly and don't lose each other. Call the moment you get to your first stop. If I don't answer…," when he began to peter off, Kenma pocketed his game and gave Kuroo a loose hug, as during the previous night it was discovered that he had severely damaged his ribs.

"…Please stay safe, Kuroo… You don't have to take on the world alone…"

Before Kuroo could give any sort of response, the bus rolled up to the curb and the two had to board. He ended up just waving them off with a sad look in his eyes.

The bus was moderately empty with only a couple of young people who appeared as if they were late for work and a bickering tourist elderly couple. The two ended up sitting in the back away from the commotion.

"According to the map, we ride until we get to Saitama, where we hop onto a train to get to Utsunomiya, and then it's an hour walk to the- um…"

"Ushijima farm," Kenma sighed, pulling his PSP back out.

"I wonder how many cows live there," Kageyama joked. Kenma, however, wasn't paying attention to him anymore. His full attention rested on his game. While he knew it was mean, Kageyama kind of wished the battery would die as he began to look around the bus. No one stared at him like they recognized who he was, or if they did, they didn't show it. The elderly couple just fought about what to see in Saitama first, while the last of the late workers got off with a low groan. It seemed no one else was going to get on at the stop until an almost sickly pale man with swooping dark green hair garbed in a large black parka hopped on. He had an unnerving smile on his face that made his eyes look extremely narrow to the point where no color showed past his eyelashes as he paid for his ticket. Even the elderly couple stopped their complaining to stare at the guy as he seemed to slither down the aisle.

"Ugh, the youth of today," the woman muttered to her husband as he passed. The man didn't seem bothered at all by her words as he sat down right in front of Kageyama.

The man's smile only seemed to grow the more Kageyama tried to look everywhere but the man, which became almost near impossible when he opened his eyes to reveal a pair of neon- green reptilian eyes. Wherever he turned, they were there taunting him.

Eventually he just gave up trying to avoid the man's stare and began to stare down at Kenma's game. From what he could tell, he was fighting an oversized underwater electrical serpent with a mediocre looking sword. He almost found it ironic with the snake-like man sitting before him.

Watching Kenma only worked for a collective of five minutes as the snake boy regained his attention when he began to lick his lips. It wasn't that he found it sexy or anything; Kageyama was more annoyed when something on the man's tongue reflected off the sunlight pouring into the bus, hitting him in the face. He expected the man to have a piercing on his tongue, but not of a silver and turquoise leaf. It took all of Kageyama's power to not sputter and flee with Kenma as he knew that would have been more suspicious than a guy with a ski mask in a bank.

"Like what you see?"

Kageyama jumped at the man's sudden question, "w-what?"

"I see you're shy cutie~," the man's voice certainly matched his appearance. He spoke with a lisp that put quite the emphasis on each 's' in his sentence, making it sound like he was constantly hissing.

"Don't worry, I don't bite. A lot."

Kageyama could tell the elderly couple was as appalled as him as they moved down a couple more seats closer to the exit.

"Umm, no, I'm fine," he tried to be as polite as humanly possible, all the while trying to nudge Kenma to get him to put his game down and help him.

"Oh, you're no fun," the man's eyes narrowed again as he stood, "but I'll have you know I can't take no for an answer."

He shed his thick parka to reveal pale green scales that coated his exposed skin under a navy t-shirt.

It wasn't until screaming filled the bus that Kenma looked up from his game, startled and confused by what he saw until the man seized Kageyama by the collar of his pullover.

"You see this could have all been easy, but you- Augh!" with a hiss of pain, he dropped Kageyama in favor of clutching at his face.

He didn't know what had just happened until Kenma just muttered something about pepper spray as he rose to his feet. By this point, the bus had stopped and the two fled before the snake man had the chance to give chase.

Luckily for them, the bus hadn't been that far off from Saitama before they ran off it and they were able to make it on time for the train to Utsunomiya.

"Too much running…," Kenma whined as he ended up leaning up against Kageyama once they secured a seat by the exit.

"Yeah…," Kageyama had to agree. He liked to run, but with the minimal amount of sleep he had over the last few days and the small bit of food he had in the morning, he was running on fumes.

"I think Kuroo packed us some fo…," he paused, painfully realizing that in their haste to escape from the man on the bus, they had forgotten their bags. He didn't need to say anything to Kenma about it as his face was already scrunched up in realization as well.

"…My PSP charger was in that bag…"

"I don't think that matters right now, dumbass…," Kageyama didn't have the energy to sound annoyed, his words just came out as passive as he too began to lean against Kenma, allowing his eyes to begin to droop, relaxing at soft scent of the blonde's apple shampoo.

"That guy wanted you," Kenma suddenly spoke, waking the raven haired teen.

"Y-yeah, he had one of those Aoba Johsai pins you told me about."

"I didn't see it…"

"On his tongue," he could feel Kenma's shiver of disgust, "our stop isn't for another few hours. I'm gonna try and sleep. Wake me if you want to sleep. I don't want us to miss our stop."

Kenma just nodded as he whipped out his PSP, the last sound Kageyama heard before he passed out being the death cry of the serpent creature in the blonde's game.


	6. Chapter 6

It had irritated Kuroo to no end how it was easier to get Kenma and Kageyama down to the bus stop than to get back into his own apartment. It wasn't the sharp pain in his ribs or the pounding in his ears that made it harder, it was the fact that he knew that he'd be alone. No Kenma playing his video games or Kageyama to watch over and he definitely didn't have the energy for a client.

By the time he made it inside, he only had the energy to collapse onto his futon. He hoped that just hitting the soft bedding would put him to sleep, however his memories of the previous night kept it at bay.

Kuroo cursed at himself as his eyes glanced at his phone. He was late for his date with his client. He didn't exactly want to go and degrade himself to the slimy man, but he paid extremely well and he knew there was a game Kenma was eyeing at the game shop. Not to mention he wanted to pick Kageyama up some of his own clothes.

As he booked it to the bus stop, his phone call from earlier was far from his mind until the scent of cigarette smoke wafted through his nose.

"Tetsurou."

He stopped right in his tracks and turned towards the alley beside the bus station to see a shorter, curly black haired man saunter out from the shadows with a dying cigarette in hand wearing a pair of high- waisted black shorts and a black halter top that exposed his pale, lightly muscled midriff. The only real cover he wore from the chilly November air was a long grey cardigan that just barely covered his ass and his black knee- length boots that clicked against the sidewalk with each limping step he took toward Kuroo, unaffected by the cold.

"Akaashi."

"I took care of your client for you. Now you're mine for the day," Akaashi stated, smooth as silk and blunt as ever. The same old Akaashi Kuroo knew all too well.

"You're limping. Did my client hurt you? I can-," Akaashi cut him off when he leaned into him, cigarette falling from his hand as he began to stare up at him with his grey-green eyes. He placed a thin, bandaged finger upon his lips with a shake of his head.

"No, Tetsurou… Could you take me home? I'll explain everything there…," his voice had lost its bite the more he fell into Kuroo to the point where his legs gave out. Unable to keep standing, the two of them fell onto the concrete.

"A-Akaashi?!" Kuroo tried not to sound panicked as he stared down at the passed out man on top of him whose cardigan had begun to turn a dark red.

Kuroo ended up taking Akaashi to his own home. The wound, from what he could tell, had been bandaged up previously, not professionally as Akaashi had told him on more than one occasion that he didn't trust hospitals. Kuroo even considered bringing him back to his apartment which was closer, but he didn't want to alert Kageyama or Kenma to his activities.

Akaashi didn't live in much of a home, but a cathouse dubbed 'Fukurodani' that was usually vacant during the day except for the manager. It was actually where Kuroo and Kenma stayed before he had bought his apartment. The building itself was in desperate need of repair, but it still remained popular in the night hours.

"Well, if it isn't Kuroo Tetsurou!" the manager beamed as she let him in until she noticed the panting Akaashi at his side. Halfway through the trip, he had awakened and demanded to be put on his feet.

"Keiji, what on earth happened to you?! When you said you wanted the night off, I didn't think you wanted to get in a fight!" she groaned before helping Kuroo get him onto a couch, "first Akinori's found dead, then Bokuto goes missing, and now here you are bleeding out on my good cushions!"

"Yukie… I don't think now's the time to scold him. Could you get some bandages for him? The wound on his back is pretty nasty," Kuroo didn't actually know what the wound looked like, only that it had bled like a stuffed pig.

The manager didn't put up an argument as she disappeared deeper into the cat house with only a tired scratch to her reddish-brown hair and a mumble about food.

"Okay now Akaashi, remove your shirt," Kuroo demanded when the other still hadn't budged even an inch except to stare at his feet.

"Come on. Don't make me have to strip you," he sighed, bending down to his level to see small tracks of tears running down his cheeks, evaporating away before they reached the bottom of his chin. "…'Kaashi…"

Gentle as he could, Kuroo rubbed the un-evaporated tears away from his scalding skin until he ended up taking some of his foundation with them to reveal a large, nasty, bluing bruise that had formed on his cheek.

"Who did this?"

"…It's not what it seems…"

"Akaashi, that's not the answer I asked for," but Kuroo believed he knew the answer already.

"Bokuto… but he wasn't in his right mind, I swear. He was being manipulated."

"Was it by Alisa or the Aoba Johsai?"

Kuroo could remember the gorgeous white- haired woman with eyes of vivid forest-green from his days in high school plain as day. She had an allure that attracted men and women alike. Her beauty wasn't just physical as she had an angelic personality to boot; however it wasn't often showed as she kept to herself until the day she had approached him. She confessed that she was a mutant and that she knew he was too. She wanted him to help her infiltrate Aoba Johsai's headquarters, claiming that they were holding her brother captive as if he were a monster. He had refused, and it still haunted him. Alisa had disappeared shortly after that which only furthered his guilt.

"I don't know… It happened last night. I was trying to find him and when I did, he lashed out."

"God Akaashi why didn't you just tell me this in the first place? Is that how you got that wound on your back?"

Akaashi shook his head as he pulled off his cardigan with a wince to reveal four deep gouges in his back that tore through his top to the point where the only thing that kept it in place was the dried blood of his wound and the useless bandage he had tried to stop the bleeding with originally.

"It was someone else. A giant white-haired man… I honestly did think it was Alisa at first… He could have killed me. I saw it in his eyes," Akaashi's eyes had become distant.

Neither of them noticed when Yukie returned with a crate full of medical supplies and a tray of onigiri and tea.

"Caring for you mutant guys is tough, you know. Do you guys realize how much heat- resistant thread and bandages cost?" Yukie yawned.

By the time she had finished Akaashi's back, the sun had begun to set and the workers were beginning to pile in to get ready for the night. Akaashi himself had fallen asleep as Yukie sewed up his back while Kuroo stared out the window of the cathouse.

"Ah fine, ignore me… Kaori, you're watching the club tonight! I need sleep."

There was a muffled groan from somewhere within the cathouse as Yukie disappeared up to the second floor where the rooms were.

It wasn't that Kuroo wasn't paying attention to her, he just didn't want to look away from the window. He knew something unfriendly was out there. He could feel a stalking gaze focused on the cathouse, but he couldn't pinpoint where it was exactly. If he could, then they would certainly have an 'accident'.

"I can feel those eyes," Akaashi began to mumble, startling Kuroo who turned to find him trying to sit up.

"Akaashi, lay back down. I don't want you t-"

"Te-Tetsurou lo-look," Akaashi's eyes had widened impossibly as he stared beyond the other dark-haired man.

Kuroo didn't want to look, but he did anyway and found himself staring at an impossibly tall white-haired man with cat-like, hunter green eyes. He was looking down at them through the window with a playful smile.

"Tetsurou-"

"Akaashi, I want you to get everyone in Fukurodani upstairs."

"But-"

"Just do it! I can handle this myself!" The sharp gold glint in his eyes didn't leave room for Akaashi to argue as he began to shakily walk away. He only glanced back when Kuroo stepped outside to meet the giant man.

Kuroo didn't meet many people who were taller than him, so standing before the man who looked like he could be pushing seven foot was rather nerve- racking. But he stood his ground, ready to bite the guy's head off until the guy beat him to it.

"Aw, I thought Akaashi-san wanted to play, too. I almost won yesterday, y'know! Hanamaki-san said if I won, he'd buy me oinarisan for making his job easier!"

While the white-haired man had height, he certainly wasn't that far along in puberty judging by his still cracking voice and attitude as he rocked dangerously on his heels, Aoba Johsai pin shining in the street light.

Young or not, however, he was a threat. Bouncing away, Kuroo brought the street lamp down on the man, "well Akaashi isn't feeling well, but I can fill his place. I'm much more experienced."

"Oh, I bet!" the teen sang into his ear. He didn't even have the chance to turn around before he was swatted painfully across the street by what he swore was a lion's paw and into the side of a dumpster.

"Hmph! It burned when I hit Akaashi-san! You're just squishy!" He whined as Kuroo tried to rise.

"Well, brat, not all mutants are the same! Try looking where you're standing!"

The grey haired man looked down, cheeks puffed, "it's just a sewage grate!"

"Exactly," with a smile, Kuroo watched as the man plummeted through with a shocked squeak, "well I must admit, I could have handled that a lot b- whoa, God!"

The last thing he expected was to be lifted off the ground and into the air. Looking up took quite the effort, but when he was able to, he caught sight of an owl-like face and a crown of white and black hair with a matching set of wings.

"Holy shit, Bokuto! You winged bastard, put me down!"

"Okaaaay!" with a snicker, he dropped Kuroo, who plummeted like a rock.

"Not in the air!"

It was then that he remembered what Akaashi had said about him. For the second time that day, Kuroo cursed at himself, each raising in severity until he stopped falling a mere foot from the ground.

"Hey, hey, hey, I'm not that cruel! I wouldn't kill you, we have so much history!" Bokuto laughed as he dropped Kuroo, not caring that he hit his head upon landing, "I'll just give you a nice old warning from the nice old coots- hey that sounds like hoot! Dammit, distracted again… Anyways, the Aoba Johsai knows where you live and they're not above taking out your little friend, mutant or not. So stop being a thorn in their side or else!"

Kuroo scowled, spitting a glob of blood and spit at Bokuto's wings, "go fuck yourself on a pole! The real Bokuto would never threaten Kenma!"

The winged man scrunched up his nose before he stalked over to the opened man hole, "come on, Lev. Get out of that hole, already!"

"And the real Bokuto would never hit Akaashi!"

Bokuto was back over to Kuroo in a flash, his fist raised and gold eyes slits, ready to shut him up permanently, but he never brought it down, he just twitched until Lev called out to him as he had finally managed to get himself out.

"Thanks for the help, Bokuto-san!" he growled sarcastically once the owl-like man turned his attention back on him.

"You got out, didn't you?" Bokuto puffed, sending Kuroo one more glare before he took flight, picking Lev up as he left, "remember what I said, or else!"

Once the two had disappeared into the moonlight, Kuroo collapsed onto his back, ready to pass out until he remembered he was right in the middle of the road. With a groan, he rose to his feet and looked toward Fukurodani, where he could see Akaashi standing in the doorway, his body steaming in the surely below freezing air.

"Tetsurou, I heard everything," he took a step forward, then changed his mind as he ducked back inside for a moment before returning with a bodacious woman with chin-length honey blonde hair, "please let Saeko-san take you home, okay?"

"Don't worry. I promise to drive nicer for once, sweetie!"

Kuroo let out a pained moan as he lifted himself off of his futon; his stomach had begun to growl at him. Saeko's driving was definitely a memory he wanted to forget from the previous night. Wandering over to the kitchen, he found his cellphone on the floor of the hallway. He was almost surprised to find that it didn't crack.

"I guess that expensive case really was worth it," he chuckled until he turned on his phone to see a picture of a younger Kenma, Bokuto, and him.

Both him and Kenma were covered in cake and candles while Bokuto stood in the middle with a cheeky grin on his face.

"Oh. November 17th… Happy birthday to me… Woo hoo," Kuroo ended up chucking his phone across the room, forgetting about it as he raided his pantry for a bag of chips, not stopping even when someone joined him in the kitchen.

"Tetsurou, you really need to lock your door," Akaashi sighed plainly as he stole a chip for himself.

"And haven't you heard of knocking, you walking ashtray?"

"What a touchy birthday boy," he snorted, dodging out of the kitchen before he could get swatted.

"Ugh, what do want, Akaashi?"

"Well, you're still here, and with Kenma leaving town, I figured you were going to see this Aoba Johsai mess all the way through. Am I wrong?"

Kuroo carded a hand through his still grimy hair, "no, you're not. I just worry we won't be able to end this on our own."

His thought didn't seem to bother Akaashi, as he just shrugged, "then we don't. It's as simple as that."

"You really need to work on your pep talk, man."

"You're not Bokuto. You don't need false words," Kuroo rolled his eyes before he shoved the bag of chips at Akaashi.


	7. Chapter 7

For once, Kageyama's dreams weren't filled with nightmares as he instead found himself dreaming about his thirteenth birthday back in the gym of his middle school. While the rest of the team had forgotten, (not that he told them or anything) Oikawa and Iwaizumi had remembered.

" _Oh birthday boy, it's birthday smack time!"_ Oikawa laughed as he trotted over to swat at the boy until Iwaizumi shooed him away.

" _Hey Trashykawa, try counting your hits next time, I think you got him a good twenty times!_ " Kageyama could remember the nasty bruise that had formed on his arm the next day and how Oikawa had later commented on how it looked like fish, like he was proud.

" _Sorry Iwa-Chan, I just couldn't resist!"_ he smiled with a pinch to his kouhai's cheek before Iwaizumi could beat him away again, _"sooo Iwa-Chan, did you remember the cake?"_

Kageyama tilted his head in confusion as Iwaizumi motioned to the two black haired teens, Kunimi and Kindaichi, in the back of the gym until they brought over a decent- sized vanilla cake covered in chocolate flakes and candles.

" _The trash king and I baked this for you. Happy birthday, Kageyama,"_ Iwaizumi said with a soft smile that Kageyama could see Oikawa swooning to. He didn't know what to say as he stared down at the cake. He wasn't given a cake that day, but a store- bought vanilla chocolate cupcake with a small sugar volleyball atop the frosting that he ended up trying to offer to Oikawa after a practice match when he missed a serve.

He shook his head as he had a bad feeling, _"ah, no, I think I'll just have some after pr-,"_ he didn't get to finish as Oikawa shoved a fork-full of the cake into his mouth with a wide smile on his face.

" _See? Isn't it good, Tobio-Chan?"_ he sang happily as the gym around Kageyama began to crumble away to reveal a bright, white lab-like room.

Kageyama couldn't move, he also could barely see a thing. Everything in the room had the same sterile glow that was hard to focus on for more than two seconds.

" _This is just a dream. It's just a dream…,"_ he repeated over and over until he found something that didn't burn his eyes. Appearing out of seemingly nowhere was a much younger Iwaizumi who rocked easily on his bandaged feet as he picked at his worn black tank top, an anxious smile on his face.

" _Tobio, I want you to kill him,"_ a much older man's voice sounded off from behind him.

" _Wh-what? N-no, I refuse, damn it!"_

It may have been a dream, but Kageyama wanted some control of the outcome. He didn't want to kill Iwaizumi again even it was just a dream. He refused to relive it.

" _O-okay sir…"_

His eyes widened as he heard his own voice, only younger before he watched as the child Iwaizumi fell to the floor with a thud. He was speechless even as the world began to crumble around him with the low voice of Kenma telling him to wake up.

"Come on, Kageyama. We're in Utsunomiya," Kenma spoke, nudging at Kageyama until his eyes snapped open.

True to his word, the train was stopped at the train station with a huge sign outside the window that read 'Welcome to Utsunomiya'.

"Sorry… bad dream again, I guess," though he wasn't exactly sure if it was a dream or not anymore.

Kenma didn't ask for the details as they disembarked much to his relief, however any relief he had quickly vanished when they saw who was waiting for them outside the train.

"Hey there, cuties. Did you miss me?" the snake-like man growled in a none too friendly way. His face still appeared to be irritated by the pepper spray as his skin was flaking and his eyes still showed red even as they were narrowed dangerously.

"You two may have given me the slip once but Daishou Suguru hasn't failed a mission yet!"

Showing off his inhuman fangs, he stepped forward, only to stop when Kageyama stood protectively in front of Kenma.

"You know brat, I don't want to be out here and you seem to care about that pudding head, so why don't we make a deal: you come with me back to my master, and I let Pudding Head go. He's on my kill list, so choose wisely."

Kageyama bit at his lip in consideration until Kenma buried his hand into the back of his pull over, "don't trust him… He's lying. "

He didn't argue, "no deal. We'll take our chances!"

His words didn't please Daishou as he began to vibrate in anger.

"You know, I tried to be nice, but you know what? Who gives a shit?!"

Screams of a giant snake began to fill the train station as people began to flee. Kageyama didn't understand until he heard Kenma scream too. Turning as fast as he could, he was greeted by the sight of an over- sized anaconda holding Kenma up by the collar of his sweater. While Kenma did kick at the snake, it didn't seem to care as it chucked the teen over to Daishou easily before turning its beady gaze on Kageyama, flicking his tongue almost hungrily.

"You see, you little shit, you piss me off," he hissed as he dug his fingers into Kenma's hair to bare his neck to Kageyama while his other held his thin wrists together, "you basically told me that I don't keep my word and this brat right here is in agreement. Don't think I didn't hear you two talking."

Kenma said nothing as he looked at Kageyama pleadingly. Kageyama himself was having his own issues as the anaconda kept trying to circle him. He had to be thankful that the heating in the station was only minimal. If it wasn't, he was sure he would have been in the snake's maw already.

"But I guess all that doesn't matter in the end. Pudding Head, you'll be a tasty snack for my beauty and that brat over there will be sitting pretty as my master's new trophy."

Kageyama saw red. Everything around him began to disappear except for the anaconda and Daishou's smug face that seemed to diminish when he saw Kageyama's face.

"He-Heh…," he took a step back, unable to look away from the burning navy eyes that followed his every movement, "c-c'mon move, Nohebi, get him! Make him stop looking at me!"

But the snake did nothing but lower itself in submission.

A wide, eerie smile formed on Kageyama's face as he began to move toward the snake man, "your snake's right to fear me. Put my friend down and I'll let you go slither back to your master."

When Daishou didn't move, the arm that was holding Kenma snapped, as did his right leg.

"You should have listened to me. I hate it when people don't listen," Kageyama spat as the man fell, allowing Kenma to roll away free.

With Kenma out of danger, Kageyama went in for the kill, his smile growing as he began to choke the life out of the troublesome man until he didn't see Daishou's face anymore, but Iwaizumi's disappointed one. With a small grunt of pain, his concentration snapped and Daishou fell to the concrete, panting heavily but alive.

"Wow, kid… Nngh… I-I see why my master wants you. You're a killer!" he laughed, voice scratchy as he watched the dark haired teen back away.

Tears of realization began to pour down Kageyama's face. He had almost killed again.

"K-Kageyama let's get out of here," Kenma whined when he saw the younger boy begin to deteriorate. When he didn't move, Kenma ended up dragging him away until he was able to start moving for himself.

The two didn't stop running until they were at the city limits and staring at a wide countryside that looked like it went on forever in the now dark sky. They both ended up collapsing in the grassiest field they could find.

"Where do we go from here?" Kenma panted, unconsciously trying to hide his neck from the other teen who had begun to stare at the red marks that had formed from where the snake held him.

Jumping slightly, Kageyama began to dig his hands through the pullover's pocket for the map, only to realize it wasn't there.

"Shit. Must have lost it in the fight."

"Of course. That seems like how it always works…," the blonde yawned as he pulled out his PSP, which hadn't broken much to his relief; however, its battery was another story, "well, the sun's gone. We might as well sleep."

Kageyama nodded, "I'll stay up and keep watch." It was the least he could do.

Kenma said nothing. He just curled closer to him for warmth and fell asleep. Luckily for the both of them, it wasn't that cold that night, which was the best thing that had happened to them all day.


End file.
